The story begins with two West Coast University students, Arian (Derek Luke) and Ernest (Michael Pena), who where inspired by their professor, Dr. Stephen Malley (Robert Redford), and decide to join the battle in Afghanistan. Now that they are fighting for survival, their fates are being decided in Washington D.C. by ambitious Republican Senator Jasper Irving (Tom Cruise), who is laying out his plan to stay the course of the war to skeptical TV journalist Janine Roth (Meryl Streep).